There’s nothing better than watching a band with obvious chemistry and intense love for performing their music in front of a willing crowd. Such was the case at The Jet City Fix’s August 28th show at the Crocodile Cafe, also showcasing Chinatown, Post Stardom Depression and The Black Halos. If you didn’t make it to the Thursday night free show, you really missed out on something special.

Is “Swedepop” a music buzzword yet? If not, allow me to coin it, because it seems like the Swedes have found the magic formula to create good guitar pop (perhaps it was lost deep in some fjord?)

I hesitate to say Sweden may even be the home of a new rock revolution, but it’s starting to seem like one could walk down any street in Sweden and hear good bands playing in each garage. The latest example is Caesars.

It’s a step forward in her unique songwriting and performance style. Party Girl was meticulously pieced together from mostly impromptu sessions across Canada, and the record certainly reflects the differences between each locale. Terrible Hostess benefits from a more stable studio sound, while at the same time capturing the giddy feel of Mark’s live show.

First off, though the titles of this EP and and its first track are both "No Fun," neither Iggy nor the Stooges make an appearance. Second, despite the lack of Iggy (a detriment to any album), this six song disc from Chicago duo Local H is a lot of fun - asses are kicked, names are taken and quarter denied.

Like the Stooges, 'No Fun is raw and dirty, standing in stark contrast to the slicker, classic-rocky production of Local H's last two albums, Pack Up the Cats (where it worked) and last year's Here Comes the Zoo (meh, not so much.)

A few months into my first semester at Washington State University back in 1998, a friend introduced me to a little bar in Moscow, Idaho known as John’s Alley. It wasn’t just the overpriced microbrew that caused me to swoon that night, but some Canadians who know how to rock, celtic bluegrass style. They called themselves The Clumsy Lovers.

Over the next couple years I was lucky enough to catch the Lovers several times at bars and street fairs in the area. Their high energy music makes

There's a saying in your generic over-critical music circles that you’re "only as good as your last album." I held to this saying until I heard Idlewild's latest effort The Remote Part.

Their previous album, 2001's 100 Broken Windows, effectively carved out its own space in my head, life and CD shelf. It was 38 minutes of which I wouldn't change a second, with plenty of high points and no filler.